Top Democrat on House Armed Services Readiness, Rep. Garamendi, Votes to Pass National Defense Authorization Act in the House

WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA08), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, voted to pass the "National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024”. The annual legislation provides the legal authority for all aspects of the United States military, including all personnel, installations, and equipment used in our national defense. The House passed the legislation by a vote of 310-118 and the legislation will now be sent to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

 

The bipartisan NDAA for Fiscal Year 2024 addresses the challenges facing our service members, military families, and national security. Garamendi was a conferee to the NDAA and was responsible for negotiating the final bill with the Senate to become law.  

 

As the top Democrat on the Subcommittee on Readiness, Garamendi added key provisions to the annual legislation to support Mare Island, Travis Air Force Base, combat the climate crisis, crack down on corporate price gouging, and more. 

 

“I am proud of the work the conference has done to create a bipartisan, bicameral report which undoes earlier efforts by MAGA Republicans to attack reproductive rights, limit access to health care, and advance racist policies,” said Garamendi. “As the top Democrat on the Readiness Subcommittee, I am pleased that the House Armed Services Committee has once again come together to address critical issues facing our service members, military families, and the more than 1,000 military installations worldwide.” 

 

“In this year’s NDAA, I built upon my previous efforts to require the military to do its part in tackling the climate crisis. I also worked to crack down on giant defense contractors who are price-gouging American taxpayers, provide new resources to help California fight wildfires, and create new good-paying union jobs in our community. No legislation of this scope is perfect, and this year’s NDAA under the House Republican Majority is no exception. But I am pleased to have worked in a bipartisan manner to ensure that this must-pass legislation addresses the critical issues for our military families and national security interests,” Garamendi concluded.  

 

Garamendi secured the following provisions in the FY 2024 National Defense Authorization Act: 

 

Supporting the Maritime Industry and the U.S. Flag International Fleet

• Garamendi advocated for support for the American maritime industry and the jobs it creates.  
• Garamendi added a provision that authorizes the Secretary of Defense to conduct a study on dredging Mare Island Straight in front of finger piers 2 and 3 to a depth of 30 feet to restore use of the piers for commercial and military use. Garamendi has championed the revitalization of Mare Island during his time in Congress, including his successful advocacy to secure a $13 million investment into the shipyard. 
• Garamendi added an additional provision inspired by his “Federal Ship Financing Improvement Act,” which will provide new federal loans and loan guarantees for repairs and retrofits of U.S.-flag civilian vessels in domestic commercial shipyards, like Mare Island Dry Dock. 
• Includes significant reforms to support U.S.-flagged vessels and the strengthening of the U.S. Maritime industry. The FY 24 NDAA includes key elements of Garamendi’s "Rebuilding the United States-Flag International Fleet Act," which will expand federal cargo preference laws to reverse the continued decline of U.S.-flagged commercial vessels delivering cargo to foreign ports. The number of ocean-going U.S.-flagged vessels has declined more than 75 percent from 737 to 177 since 1985, following the 1982 treaty, known as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Garamendi’s legislation addresses this issue. 

Tackling the Climate Crisis

• The U.S. military is the largest institutional consumer of petroleum in the world, and Garamendi’s efforts will successfully convert the military from a problem in the climate crisis to a key ally to combat climate change. 

• Garamendi increased funding for the DoD’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program. The bill also includes key provisions to streamline military service participation in REPI agreements. It also includes “partnership which will “help landowners and land managers protect land and advance sustainable land use practices around military installations.”
• Garamendi also secured additional funding for the Navy BRAC account to support toxic clean-up at Mare Island.  

Protecting Military installations 

• Includes new policy that will require the DoD to formalize its process to identify and report land purchases around military bases and installations which may impact the installations’ military missions.  

Firefighting Support 

• Includes key provisions from Garamendi’s “Military Support for Fighting Wildfires Act” to provide new resources to help states like California fight wildfires, supporting the California Air National Guard’s disaster response work.  
• Includes support for the FireGuard program, a vital asset through which the DoD can provide real-time information about suspected wildfires to state and local agencies. This program ensures U.S. military support for emergency responses by authorizing the partnership between the California Air National Guard with the U.S. Air Force and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 
• Provides authorization to transfer demilitarized aircraft to CalFire.

Modernizing the Military’s List of Medically Disqualifying Conditions 

• Garamendi added a key provision to the NDAA that directs the DOD to update the list of medically disqualifying conditions for military service to ensure enlistees are not needlessly disqualified from serving or continuing to serve in the military. The current list of medically disqualifying conditions was designed when female enlistees were far less common, therefore many female enlistees are unnecessarily disqualified from enlisting.

Supporting Military Members and their Families 

• Increases the number of families who may qualify for Basic Needs Allowance to supplement living expenses for junior members and their families.  
• Increases funding by $301 million for new child development centers, $60 million to accelerate future child development center replacements, and provides $70 million for educational agencies with military dependent students that serve children with severe disabilities. 
• Supports military families by approving a 5.2 percent pay raise to offset the effects of inflation.  
• Supports Reserve Service members by establishing parental leave parity for Reserve Component service members; authorizes dual BAH for Reserve Component service members during training and extends the period of eligibility for health benefits of survivors of Reserve Component service members. 
• Garamendi ensured provisions that establish defense-wide standards for installation access and ensure that the House Armed Services Committee will have additional oversight. This will help continue his push to create transparent access standards without jeopardizing installation security. 

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